Poul Henningsen endeavored to create glare-free light, direct light where it was most needed, and create soft shadows, using incandescent bulbs as a light source. Henningsen's mathematic approach to lighting, using the logarithmic spiral, led to the development of the System PH in 1926, which over the years has included hundreds of different models, ranging from floor lamps to table lamps, pendants, chandeliers, and wall lamps.

The PH 1/1 Portable Lamp is a cordless version of the classic table lamp. The PH 1/1 is the smallest shade set of the System PH and is described as a "whole" sized lamp, characterized by its appealing compact semblance with a top shade of approximately 10 cm, corresponding to the middle and lower shade in the proportions 3:2:1. PH's "whole" sized lamps are designed to be particularly glare-free, and they are therefore ideally placed high in a room where they integrate high-quality lighting with a warm ambience.

The PH 1/1 Portable Lamp can be used for both indoors and outdoors, particularly in spots where there may not be easy access to mains electricity, such as inside a bookcase or on a table.